A truncated octahedral nanocage containing amide and quinoline groups has been synthesized as an artificial chemosensor for selectively fluorescent detection of uridine over other RNA-based nucleosides.

DFT calculations were used to investigate adsorptionof  F-, Cl-, Li+ and Na+ ions on the exterior surface of Mg12O12 nanocage in the gas phase and water media. The most favorite position for adsorption of the studied anions and cations are atop of Mg and O atoms of Mg12O12, respectively. The strongest intera...

Effective vaccines are urgently needed to combat gonorrhea, a common sexually transmitted bacterial infection, for which treatment options are diminishing due to rapid emergence of antibiotic resistance. We have used a rational approach to the development of gonorrhea vaccines, and genetically engineered nanoparticles to present antigenic peptides of Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the causative agent o...

A new structure, consisting of a shell cross-linked, 2 nm size siloxane nanocage containing propylamine groups tethered to the interior face of the shell was synthesized, starting with micelles of the surfactant molecule, (triethoxysilyl)propylcetylcarbamate. After hydrolysis of the ethoxysilyl groups and condensation and capping of the silanols to form a cross-linked, one-atom-layer-thick silo...

Folded graphene has exhibited novel electrical and mechanical properties unmatched by pristine graphene, which implies that morphology of graphene adds the dimensionality of design space to tailor its properties. However, how to overcome the energy barrier of the folding process to fold the graphene with the specific morphology remains unexplored. Here we propose a programmable chemical functio...

Matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP-2) in metastatic cancer tissue, which is associated with a poor prognosis, is a potential target for tumor imaging in vivo. Here, we describe a metastatic cancer cell-targeted protein nanocage. An MMP-2-binding peptide, termed CTT peptide (CTTHWGFTLC), was conjugated to the surface of a naturally occurring heat shock protein nanocage by genetic modification. The ...

A discrete nanocage of core-shell design, in which carboxylic acid groups were tethered to the core and silanol to the shell interior, was found to react with Co2(CO)8 to form and stabilize a Co(I)-CO species. The singular CO stretching band of this new Co species at 1958 cm(-1) and its magnetic susceptibility were consistent with Co(I) compounds. When exposed to O2, it transformed from an EPR ...

Cells routinely compartmentalize enzymes for enhanced efficiency of their metabolic pathways. Here we report a general approach to construct DNA nanocaged enzymes for enhancing catalytic activity and stability. Nanocaged enzymes are realized by self-assembly into DNA nanocages with well-controlled stoichiometry and architecture that enabled a systematic study of the impact of both encapsulation...

We report on the synthesis and characterization of single-crystal caged gold nanorods (CGNRs) which exhibited broadband plasmonic resonances. Redshift of plasmon resonance can be realized by increasing the length, whereas blueshift can be achieved by increasing either the overall width of the cage or the thickness of nanocage walls.

A high-nuclearity metal-cyanide cluster [Mo6Cu14] has been prepared and its photomagnetic properties investigated. The photoswitchable magnetic phenomenon observed is thermally reversible (T≈ 230 K). In the field of photomagnetism, [Mo6Cu14] represents a unique example of a nanocage and the highest nuclearity observed so far.